HTC Butterfly S specifications:

• Processor: 1.9GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 600
• Operating system: Google Android with HTC Sense
• Cellular connectivity: Quad-band UMTS/HSPA (42Mbps) and quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE
• Other connectivity: GPS/AGPS + GLONASS, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, DLNA
• Display: 5.0-inch Full HD (1080×1920/440PPI) Super LCD 3 with Corning Gorilla Glass 3
• RAM: 2GB
• Storage: 16GB and microSD cards up to 64GB
• Rear-facing camera: HTC UltraPixel with BSI sensor and f/2.0 aperture
• Front-facing camera: 2.1MP
• Connectors: 3.5mm audio jack, micro-USB 2.0
• Battery: 3,200mAh
• Dimensions: 144.5 x 70.5 x 10.6 millimeters
• Weight: 160 grams
• Colors: Grey, Red, White
• Other: HTC BoomSound, Miracast

The HTC Butterfly S will launch in July for NT $22,900 (about $770). It remains to be seen if the HTC Butterfly S will make it to North America.

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DroidLanding 1st Tweet

DroidLanding 2nd Tweet

DroidLanding 3rd Tweet

 
Let us know in the comments if you are playing the game!

The post ATTENTION: DroidLanding is Activated! appeared first on Brief Mobile.

Samsung and AT&T announced the arrival of the Galaxy S4 in an exclusive color, Red Aurora. This 16GB model is priced at $199.99 on a two-year contract and $639.99 list price. Other than the great color, the specifications remain the same – 5-inch 1920 x 1080 display, 1,9GHz Quad-Core, 13MP Camera, and 4.2.2 Jelly Bean.

ORDER HERE

Let us know in the comments if you will be picking up one of these red beauties!

The post Exclusive Red Aurora Galaxy S4 on AT&T appeared first on Brief Mobile.

Not content with just launching the world’s thinnest smartphone, the Huawei Ascend P6, Richard Yu, Chief Executive Officer for Huawei’s Consumer Business Group, also shared some thoughts today on the smartphone market. In particular, he did not rule out buying Nokia if the move helped Huawei become the world’s leading smartphone manufacturer. He told The Financial Times, “We are considering these sorts of acquisitions; maybe the combination has some synergies but depends on the willingness of Nokia. We are open-minded.”

Yu went on to describe Windows Phone as a “weak” platform with a very small market share. Given that Nokia has essentially bet its future on Windows Phone, what would a Nokia acquisition give Huawei? Given the current friction between Huawei and the U.S. government, the move might allow the manufacturer to make inroads into the U.S. market, especially if it keeps Nokia at arm’s length and lets it continue to build its North American business. Huawei could even get Nokia to ditch Windows Phone in favour of Android.

As for Nokia, it has not given any sign that it would be up for such a sale.

Yu went on to predict the smartphone market could eventually consolidate to a point where only three or four companies would remain.

Let us know below if you would considering buying a Nokia device if the company was owned by Huawei.

The post Huawei Considering Buying Nokia? appeared first on Brief Mobile.

On June 5, 2013, the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office published Google’s latest trademark for “Solve for X.” This is a think tank project launched by Google to solve a mired of global issues through collaboration. Our friends at Patent Bolt give us the following information:

The US Patent Office officially granted Google their Registered Trademark Certificate yesterday June 04, 2013 and published it earlier today. The trademark is registered under the following three International Classes:

International Class 041: Organization of conferences, symposia, and forums in the field of the use of technology to solve international problems.

International Class 042: Providing a website featuring information regarding the use of technology to solve international problems.

International Class 038: Providing an on-line forum for the discussion and use of technology to solve international problems.

On Google’s website, they describe what the “Solve for X” forum is all about and provide an introductory video of what they hope to accomplish:

Solve for X is a forum to hear and discuss radical technology ideas for solving global problems. Radical in the sense that the solutions could help billions of people. Radical in the sense that the audaciousness of the proposals makes them sound like science fiction. And radical in the sense that there is some real technology breakthrough on the horizon to give us all hope that these ideas could really be brought to life.

This combination of things – a huge problem to solve, a radical solution for solving it, and the breakthrough technology to make it happen – is the essence of a moonshot.

Solve for X is intended to be a forum to encourage and amplify technology-based moonshot thinking and teamwork.

The post Google’s “Solve for X” is Now Officially a Trademark appeared first on Brief Mobile.

HTC One

According to R.W. Baird’s William Power, in his weekly check of best-selling phones, Apple’s iPhone and Samsung’s Galaxy S4 were still the top-selling smartphones. The HTC One was in the popular third place. BlackBerry sales have been “modest” for BlackBerry’s newest phone, the Q10 with a physical keyboard.

Apple iPhone 5

Mr. Power gets his information directly from the stores and sees variation between the different carriers. AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile stores are listing, in sales order, the iPhone, Galaxy S4, and HTC One as third. At Verizon stores, the iPhone and Galaxy S4 are the top two, but some stores mention the Motorola RAZR HD and other RAZR models at third. The Galaxy Note 2, LG Optimus G, and LG Nexus 4 were mentioned as third place alternatives.

Galaxy S4

When it comes to the BlackBerry Q10, its Verizon launch was very similar to the T-Mobile and AT&T launches two weeks ago – die-hard fans and enterprise users were happy to see it arrive, but no store sold out on launch day, with most reps saying sales are running modestly.

BlackBerry Q10

The difference between carriers is not surprising since Verizon is sole Droid seller and pushes those models, although the HTC One is a beautiful phone with great specs. It is interesting to “note” that the Galaxy Note 2 was released the last October and November in the U.S. and is still selling fairly well – especially since it was discounted recently.

The post HTC One is Third in Smartphone Sales appeared first on Brief Mobile.

Smartphone theft is at an all-time high, nearly 175 million cellphones were stolen in the past year accounting for $69 billion dollars in sales – half of the robberies in San Francisco were phone-related! The Federal Communications Commission reports that almost one out of three crimes is cellphone related. The thefts have become so commonplace there is already a term coined, “Apple-picking.”

Darren Hayes, a professor and computer information systems program chair at Pace University in New York said: 

“Smartphones have become such an extension of our lives with all of our personal information on them and criminals recognizing its mass appeal. Professionally, there are some corporate network administrators who can control their company servers from their smartphone. While it’s convenient, it could also put them at risk and could be the biggest source of data loss if they are stolen. We could see a potential nightmare emerging.”

The Attorney General of New York, Erich Schneiderman, met with the tech giants, including Samsung, to discuss the addition of a “kill switch” on cellphones to reduce the number of phone thefts. Microsoft and BlackBerry have a way to remotely wipe your device’s information and Apple has a way to remotely find your device – and with iOS 7, your device cannot be reactivated after a remote wipe…causing you to “pick” a “rotten Apple.”

Samsung, the largest manufacturer of cellphones, is working on their solution with the introduction of a “kill switch.” Once activated, it would enable manufacturers, carriers, and possibly law enforcement, to “brick” anybody’s phone rendering it useless. No details were released, however, if it is implemented next month, some information may be leaked soon.

Let us know in the comments how you feel about this feature allowing somebody else to “brick” your phone from a remote site.

The post Samsung Building “Kill Switch,” Rumored July Launch appeared first on Brief Mobile.

MacRumors released a set of photos earlier of the iPhone 5S Logic Boards, and now have a received photos, via iHeart Repair, showing the display assembly. The pair of flexible connectors from the display corresponds properly to the logic board’s horizontal and vertical connectors.

The iPhone 5S will more than likely use the previous case to hold the new electronics, as Apple seems to do when they have the “S” updates. The rumor is still for a September release, but no specific details of the phone have been released, photographed, or leaked.  Let us know in the comments if you plan of picking up an iPhone 5S.

The post iPhone 5S Display Surfaces – Perfect Fit For Logic Boards appeared first on Brief Mobile.

On June 6 BriefMobile did an article on the Sony Xperia Z – Sony executives said it was going to T-Mobile, then we had FCC passage confirming the T-Mobile LTE Bands, and then a screenshot showing information about the Xperia Z in their system – finally, T-Mobile has made it official with a press release (read below) that it will be its exclusive carrier.

Sony went with a stylish and durable physical design with unique technology, content and connectivity all bundled into the Xperia Z. A 5-inch 1080p HD Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine 2 provides super brightness and clarity. The highly-durable design features tempered glass and anti-shatter film on the front and back and the highest levels of dust- and water-resistance2 (IP55 and IP57) in a premium smartphone. A 13-megapixel camera with Exmor RS(TM) for Mobile, the world’s first image sensor with HDR (High Dynamic Range) video for smartphones, delivers stunning photos and videos in any condition. And its STAMINA mode is designed to greatly improve battery standby time by automatically shutting down battery-draining apps when the screen is off.

Release date is listed as “in coming weeks,” it will be available in a black finish and a limited time purple finish, “while supplies last.” Let us know if you are going pick up a Sony Xperia Z and start taking those underwater pictures.

The post T-Mobile Makes it Official – Xperia Z Will “Splash” Down This Summer appeared first on Brief Mobile.

Huawei today announced the Ascend P6 at an event in London, UK. Only 6.18 millimeters thick, it is billed as the world’s slimmest smartphone.

The Huawei Ascend P6 also features a couple of more unique features. It sports a 5MP front-facing camera (overkill or overdue?) as well as a “MagicTouch” display that can work even when users are wearing gloves. Huawei also touts its proprietary IMAGESmart software that offers contrast and color enhancement, auto scene recognition, object tracing focus, and instant facial beauty support.

“The HUAWEI Ascend P6 is a star among smartphones with its industry-leading design, high-quality camera, and intuitive user interface, Huawei’s proprietary Emotion UI,” said Richard Yu, Chief Executive Officer, Huawei Consumer Business Group. “Building on the success of our Ascend P series of fashion smartphones, the HUAWEI Ascend P6 provides unsurpassed technology and a design that is simply stunning.”

Huawei Ascend P6 specifications:

• Processor: 1.5GHz quad-core
• Operating system: Google Android 4.2.2 and Huawei Emotion UI
• Display: 4.7-inch HD (720×1280)
• Rear-facing camera: 8MP BSI with f/2.0 aperture
• Front-facing camera: 5MP
• Battery: 2,000mAh
• Dimensions: 6.18 millimeters thick
• Weight: 120 grams
• Colors: Black, white and pink

The Huawei Ascend P6 will first launch in June in China before making its way over to Europe in July. There is no word yet on North American availability.

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